When you think of electronics, you might envision computers, MP3 players, smart phones or any of the small personal equipment that have become prominent parts of the business world and our everyday lives. However, electronics is a much broader field that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components. Ever since the first transistor was introduced in 1947, the electronics industry has grown significantly, leading to the introduction of the microchip in the early 1960s and the birth of modern electronics. If you would like to join this ever-evolving field, you can earn an online electronics degree from the comfort of your own home.

Online Electronics Degree Levels

Online electronics degrees are offered from the associate’s to the doctoral level. A short-term diploma or two-year associate’s degree in electronics qualifies you to become an electronics technician, while a four-year bachelor’s degree is the minimum requirement for most entry-level electronics engineering jobs.

Electronics technicians help with the setup and testing of equipment, generally under the supervision of an electronics engineer. Electronics engineers are typically involved in the design, development, testing, and supervision of the manufacturing of electronic equipment. Either a master’s degree, which ucually takes two years to complete or a doctoral degree, which takes three to five years to complete, could help to assist you in securing advanced positions within the field.

Why Take Online Electronics Courses?

Students choose to pursue online electronics courses over a traditional brick-and-mortar education, because online programs offer career changers the chance to get a degree without having to attend classes on campus or quit their jobs. There can also be a large computing component in electronics training programs, which is well suited to online learning.

Valuable skills that you may develop with online electronics training includes problem-solving skills, decision-making skills, the ability to think logically, the ability to collect data, and the ability to work successfully in a team. Much of the coursework is theoretical, especially at higher degree levels. Classes that you might be required to take include:

Mathematics

Electrical circuits

Microprocessors

Digital electronics

Electronic applications

Electronics Career Paths

The scope of employment in the electronics industry goes beyond the world of personal electronics. Electronics engineers and electronic engineering technicians also work in defense, communications, and medical electronics. Salaries in the electronics field tend to be generous, a factor that attracts many people to the industry. Electronics engineers earn wages as high as twice the national average. In 2012, electronic engineering technicians earned a median annual salary of $57,850, while electronics engineers earned $91,820.

Although globalizations has caused many job to migrate to developing countries where costs are lower, the demand for electronic engineers domestically will remain in engineering services firms and computer systems design and wireless telecommunications organizations, especially when it comes to research and development.

Online electronic degrees grant access to this expanding industry without requiring you to quit your job or to go back to school full-time. Receiving training in electronics will be valuable no matter where you live, because the electronics industry is global. Explore your educational and career opportunities in the electronics field today!